Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Which will run out first in China - the water or the fish?

Hot on the heels of the "Fish to run out by 2048" stories comes news that China may run out of water by 2030.

One has to assume therefore that any Chinese fish are likely to die off 18 years earlier than the rest of the world's fish (if the pollution has not killed them first of course).

China may run out of water by 2030

A senior environmental official warned Sunday that China could run out of water by 2030. Hu Siyi, vice-minister of water resources said China is expected to use 700-800 billion cubic metres of water per year but according to state media there may be only 800-900 billion cubic metres available, the South China Morning Post reported. "If we don't adopt effective measures soon our country will face a daunting water resource crisis," Hu said during a two-day academic conference in Hefei, Anhui Province. The country has been battling water shortages in the northern and western provinces for more than a decade. Burgeoning economic growth has only aggravated the problem.


Additional reporting that the Yellow river is at record lows:

Water Flow in China's Yellow River Hits Record Low

But China's increasing wealth and growing population means it faces an uphill challenge in managing its already-scarce water. The country is home to one-fifth of the world's population but has only 7 percent of its water resources.

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